This is a list of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom,
Crown dependenciesCrown dependencies and British Overseas Territories. There are a
number of agencies that participate in law enforcement in the United
Kingdom which can be grouped into three general types:

Territorial police forces, who carry out the majority of policing.
These are police forces that cover a police area (a particular region)
and have an independent police authority. Current police forces have
their grounding in the
Police Act 1996Police Act 1996 (in
EnglandEngland and Wales), a
combination of
Police (Scotland) Act 1967Police (Scotland) Act 1967 and
PolicePolice and Fire Reform
(Scotland) Act 2012 (in Scotland) and the
PolicePolice (Northern Ireland)
Act 2000 (in Northern Ireland), which prescribe a number of issues
such as appointment of a chief constable, jurisdiction and
responsibilities.
National law enforcement bodies, including the National Crime Agency
and national police forces that have a specific, non-regional
jurisdiction, such as the British Transport Police. The Serious
Organised Crime and
PolicePolice Act 2005 refers to these as 'special police
forces'. In addition, there are non-police law enforcement agencies,
whose officers are not police officers, but still enforce laws, and
other bodies with solely investigatory powers.
Miscellaneous police forces, mostly having their foundations in older
legislation or common law. These are responsible for policing specific
local areas or activities, such as ports and parks. Before the passing
of recent legislation such as the Serious Organised Crime and Police
Act 2005, they were often referred to as 'special police forces'; care
must therefore be taken in interpreting historical use of that phrase.
These constabularies are not within the scope of the legislation
applicable to the previously-mentioned organisations but can still be
the subject of statutes applicable to, for example, docks, harbours or
railways. Until the passing of Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003,
the
British Transport PoliceBritish Transport Police was such a force.

The majority of law enforcement in the
United KingdomUnited Kingdom is carried out
by territorial police forces that police the general public and their
activities. The other types of agencies are concerned with policing of
more specific matters.
Over the centuries there has been a wide variation in the number of
police forces in the United Kingdom, with a large number now no longer
in existence.

7 Overseas law enforcement in the UK
8 See also
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links

Territorial police forces[edit]
See also: List of police forces of the United Kingdom
EnglandEngland and Wales[edit]

Except in Greater London, each territorial police force covers one or
more of the local government areas (counties) established in the 1974
local government reorganisations (although with subsequent
modifications), in an area known in statute as a police area. These
forces provide the majority of policing services to the public of
EnglandEngland and Wales. These forces have been known historically as "Home
Office police forces" due to the Acts of Parliament[citation needed]
that established them although use of that description was only
correct for the
Metropolitan PoliceMetropolitan Police and in that case ceased to be so
when local control was transferred from the
Home OfficeHome Office to the
Metropolitan PoliceMetropolitan Police Authority. Despite the implication of the term,
all police forces are independent, with operational control resting
solely with the chief officer of each force (the
Chief ConstableChief Constable or
with regard to the
Metropolitan PoliceMetropolitan Police and City of London Police
forces, their respective Commissioners); each force was overseen by a
Police authority until these were replaced by
PolicePolice and Crime
Commissioners in 2012.
The
Police Act 1996Police Act 1996 is the most recent piece of legislation, which
outlines the areas of responsibility for the 43 territorial forces of
England and WalesEngland and Wales (found in Schedule 1 of the Act).
ConstableConstable is the lowest rank in the police service, but all officers,
whatever their rank are "constables" in terms of legal powers and
jurisdiction.
PolicePolice officers in territorial police forces in England
and
WalesWales derive their jurisdiction from Section 30 of the
PolicePolice Act
1996. This section outlines that such officers have jurisdiction
throughout
England and WalesEngland and Wales and also the adjacent United Kingdom
waters.
SpecialSpecial Constables, who are part-time, volunteer officers of
these forces, used to have a more limited jurisdiction – limited
solely to their own force areas and adjacent forces (collectively,
their "constablewick"). Since 1 April 2007, however
SpecialSpecial Constables
of
EnglandEngland &
WalesWales have full police powers throughout those two
countries. This means that, in contrast to the majority of countries,
all UK volunteer police officers now have exactly the same powers as
their full-time colleagues. There are a number of situations in which
the jurisdiction of a constable extends to one of the other countries
– see the main article for details.
PolicePolice of
EnglandEngland and Wales
As of March 2010 police numbers in
England and WalesEngland and Wales were:[1]

Most police powers and functions have been inherited by the Scottish
Government and
Scottish ParliamentScottish Parliament from the Scottish Office. Areas for
which legislative responsibility remains with the UK Government
include national security, terrorism, firearms and drugs. The Police
(Scotland) Act 1967, as amended, was the basis for the organisation
and jurisdiction of the eight former territorial forces in Scotland
that were formed in 1975. These forces covered one or more of the
areas of the local government regions established in the 1975 local
government reorganisation (and since abolished), with minor
adjustments to align with the post-1996 council area borders. These
forces provided the majority of police services to the public of
Scotland, although Scottish police officers also have limited
jurisdiction throughout the rest of the
United KingdomUnited Kingdom as required
(See above comments under English and Welsh forces).
In 2011, the
Scottish GovernmentScottish Government announced that it planned to
amalgamate the eight territorial forces in Scotland, along with the
Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, into a single agency. The
PolicePolice and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012, an Act of the Scottish
Parliament, codified this amalgamation and brought about the new
PolicePolice Service of
ScotlandScotland (to be known as "
PolicePolice Scotland"). The new
force was established on 1 April 2013.
PolicePolice Scotland
In 2017, plans were being debated in the
Scottish ParliamentScottish Parliament to merge
railway policing with
PolicePolice Scotland.
As of December 2012, police numbers in
ScotlandScotland were:[4]

Community Support Officers, commonly referred to as "
PolicePolice Community
Support Officers", were established by Section 38(2) of the Police
Reform Act 2002, which applies only to
EnglandEngland and Wales. There are
therefore no Community Support Officers in Scotland.
Northern Ireland[edit]

County and borough based police forces were not formed in Ireland as
they were in Great Britain, with instead a single Royal Irish
Constabulary covering most of Ireland (the exceptions being the Dublin
Metropolitan Police, which was responsible for policing in Dublin, and
the
Belfast Town Police force, which was replaced by the RIC in the
1880s). The
Royal Ulster ConstabularyRoyal Ulster Constabulary was formed in 1922 after the
establishment of the Irish Free State, and served until the reforms of
the police under the terms established initially by the Good Friday
Agreement of 1998 undertaken by the Patten Commission, which led to
the renaming of the RUC in 2001. The
PolicePolice (Northern Ireland) Act
2000 sets out the basis for the organisation and function of the
police force in the province. Until 2010, police powers were not
transferred to the devolved
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland Executive, unlike
Scotland, instead remaining with the
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland Office. However,
in January 2010 agreement was reached between the two largest parties
in the Assembly, the DUP and Sinn Féin, over a course that would see
them assume responsibility for policing and justice from April.[5]
PolicePolice Service of Northern Ireland
As of April 2007 police numbers in
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland were:[1]

PolicePolice in
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland do not employ
PolicePolice Community Support
Officers
Naming[edit]
County police forces traditionally bore the name "constabulary" upon
their formation (as a derivation of "constable"). The reorganisation
of police forces over the years has seen this name dropped in favour
of "police" as a name, as many have decided that the word
"constabulary" is confusing for people more used to searching for the
word "police".[6] However, a number of police forces in the areas
overseen by the
United KingdomUnited Kingdom retain the name "constabulary":

National law enforcement[edit]
Bodies with police powers[edit]
These bodies operate in more than one country of the United Kingdom.
The remit of some of the forces is further limited to the areas that
they police, such as railway infrastructure. The Anti-terrorism, Crime
and Security Act 2001 gave the
British Transport PoliceBritish Transport Police and Ministry
of Defence
PolicePolice a limited, conditional authority to act outside of
their primary jurisdiction if the situation requires urgent police
action and the local force are not readily available, or if they
believe that there is risk to life or limb, or where they are
assisting the local force.

Government agencies

National Crime AgencyNational Crime Agency (NCA) – An agency that leads UK-wide
activities to combat high-level crime such as organised crime. In
addition, the NCA acts as the UK point of contact for foreign law
enforcement agencies. It replaced the Serious Organised Crime Agency
in 2013.
Border ForceBorder Force is a part of the Home Office, responsible for frontline
border control operations at air, sea and rail ports in the United
Kingdom. Employees of
Border ForceBorder Force may be Immigration Officers and/or
customs officers. They hold certain powers of arrest, detention and
search in addition to those available to Any person[8] in
EnglandEngland and
WalesWales or to any person in
ScotlandScotland and Northern Ireland. Police-like
powers are exercised by border officers and inland immigration
enforcement officers.
Immigration EnforcementImmigration Enforcement The agency also has a specialist criminal
investigations directorate.
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. Since the creation of the UK Border
Agency (now Border Force), staff of HMRC no longer perform frontline
duties at ports of entry. The remainder of the staff with law
enforcement powers employed by HMRC consists of the Criminal
Investigation Branch, who, as customs officers, continue to exercise
the powers granted under the Customs Management Acts and the Police
and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 including arrest.

Additionally, the following three government agencies are defined in
legislation as "special police forces". As these forces are
responsible to specific areas of infrastructure, they do not answer to
the Home Office, but instead to the government department responsible
for the area they police. All three forces do voluntarily submit
themselves to
HMIC inspection:

Ministry of Defence PoliceMinistry of Defence Police – A police force tasked with providing
armed security, uniformed policing, and investigative services to
Ministry of Defence installations throughout the United Kingdom.[9]
Civil Nuclear
Constabulary – A police force responsible for
providing law enforcement and security at or within 5 km of any
relevant nuclear site and for nuclear materials in transit within the
United Kingdom.[10]
British Transport PoliceBritish Transport Police (Great Britain) – A police force
responsible for providing law enforcement at certain railways and
light-rail systems in Great Britain.[1]

Bodies with limited executive powers[edit]
These organisations are not police forces but do have similar powers
to that of the police with the exception that they cannot arrest a
person nor make forcible entry without a warrant.

Bodies with solely investigatory powers[edit]
Main article: Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000
The use of investigatory powers is controlled by the Regulation of
Investigatory Powers Act 2000. Up to 792 public authorities have
powers that are restricted by RIPA.[13]

Miscellaneous police forces[edit]
These police forces generally come under the control of a local
authority, public trusts or even private companies; examples include
some ports police and the Mersey Tunnels Police. They could have been
established by individual Acts of Parliament or under common law
powers. Jurisdiction is generally limited to the relevant area of
private property alone and in some cases (e.g. docks and harbours) the
surrounding area. This, together with the small size of the police
forces, means they are often reliant on the territorial force for the
area under whose jurisdiction they fall to assist with any serious
matter. The statutory responsibility for law and order sits with the
territorial police forces even if there is a specialist police force
in the locality. These police forces do not have independent Police
Authorities and their founding statutes (if any) do not generally
prescribe their structure and formation.
Ports police[edit]
There are two types of port police in the
United KingdomUnited Kingdom — most are
sworn in under the 1847 Act, but a few have Acts specific to their
port.

For every port/harbour, an individual
Act of ParliamentAct of Parliament (or, more
recently, a Harbour (Revision) Order) can incorporate parts of the
Harbours, Docks, and Piers Clauses Act 1847Harbours, Docks, and Piers Clauses Act 1847 (HDPCA) and apply them to
that specific port/harbour. Officers of port police forces are sworn
in as "special constables" under section 79 of the 1847 Act, as
incorporated by the individual local Act. As a result, officers have
the full powers of a constable on any land owned by the harbour, dock,
or port and at any place within one mile of any owned land.
The
Marine Navigation Act 2013Marine Navigation Act 2013 has potentially enabled ports contables
in
EnglandEngland &
WalesWales to act as constables beyond this one mile
limit, in relation to policing purposes connected with the port only,
in a police area where consent has been obtained from the relevant
Chief Constable.[14] This act does not however give general police
powers to ports constables beyond their core jurisdiction as set out
in the 1847 act, merely in relation to policing purposes connected to
the port as set out in the Act. As of 2014, 3 ports police forces
(Dover, Teesport and Bristol) have sought and received consent from
the local Chief Constable, with a fourth (Liverpool) in the process of
applying for it. This has enabled these 3 ports forces to act as
constables, in relation to policing purposes connected to the port,
throughout the police area in which they are geographically
located.[15] There are 224 constables sworn in under the 1847 Act.[16]
Serious or major incidents or crime generally become the
responsibility of the local territorial police force.

These small constabularies are responsible for policing specific land
and parks. Officers of these forces have the powers of a constable
within their limited jurisdiction. They are not constables as dealt
with in the general
PolicePolice Acts.

Epping Forest Keepers

Current powers derive from regulations made under Epping Forest Act
1878

Constables of this force have full police powers whilst on land
belonging to the Royal Botanical Gardens as per the Parks Regulation
Act 1872 as amended by section 3 (a) of the Parks Regulation
(Amendment) Act 1974.

The Parks Regulation Act 1872 provides for the attestation of parks
constables.

Parks controlled by local authorities

A photograph of officers of the Birmingham Parks Police, taken between
c. 1900 and 1910.

Over history, a number of local authorities outside London have
maintained their own parks police forces, the most notable being
LiverpoolLiverpool (
LiverpoolLiverpool Parks Police) and Birmingham (Birmingham Parks
Police). No local authority parks police forces currently exist
outside London, although the legal powers for them to do so (granted
by various local Acts of Parliament) survive in a limited number of
cases.
In London, these constabularies are responsible for enforcing byelaws
within the parks and open spaces of their respective local
authorities. Members of the constabularies are sworn as constables
under article 18 of the Greater London Parks and Open Spaces Order
1967.[20] Members of the constabularies are constables only in
relation to the enforcement of the parks byelaws (which, by
definition, apply only in the parks).[21]

Parks
PolicePolice Service, created through the merger of Hammersmith and
Fulham Parks
Constabulary and Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Parks
PolicePolice in 2013.[22]
Hampstead Heath Constabulary, also appointed under the Corporation of
London opens spaces act sec 16, 1878 with the full powers and
privileges of a
PolicePolice Constable.
Hillingdon Parks Patrol Service
Wandsworth Parks and Events Police

Some of these constables have (or have had) a shared role as security
staff for their own local authority's buildings and housing estates
with appropriate changes of badges and/or uniform being made when
changing to/from park duties.
Other[edit]

Service police[edit]
Main article: Military police of the United Kingdom
Each branch of the military has its own police service, though the
powers of a service police officer are identical and recipricol across
all three services. The service police is made up of the:

Royal Navy Police
Royal Military Police
Royal Air Force Police

In the UK, the service police exercise jurisdiction over those serving
in the military in any capacity and those civilians subject to service
discipline as defined by the Armed Forces Act 2006.[24] They are not
'constables' and do not have any policing powers in relation to the
general public in normal circumstances.[25] In British Forces Germany,
under the Status Of Forces Act, military police have jurisdiction over
British Forces personnel, their families, MOD contractors, and NAAFI
staff.
Service
PolicePolice are PACE trained and all investigations are PACE
compliant. They make regular use of civilian police facilities often
conducting joint investigations where necessary. The Service Police
are able to investigate all crime within their jurisdiction, up to and
including Murder, however within the UK, offences of murder and sudden
deaths are passed to the local police force as per national
jurisdiction agreements.
Whilst operating in conflict zones the military police will conduct
the full range of policing including murder investigations as
evidenced by the Sgt Blackman investigation.[26]
Crown dependencies[edit]
Isle of Man[edit]

The Isle of Man
Constabulary (Meoiryn-Shee Ellan Vannin) is the police
service of the Isle of Man.
The
Isle of Man Airport Police polices the main Isle of Man Airport
(in Ronaldsway), with officers who are "warranted constables" under
the Isle of Man Airports and Civil Aviation Act.

States of
JerseyJersey Customs and Immigration Service
Honorary PoliceHonorary Police – There is an
Honorary PoliceHonorary Police (French: Police
Honorifique) force in each parish in Jersey.
Honorary PoliceHonorary Police officers
have, for centuries, been elected by parishioners to assist the
Connétable of the Parish to maintain law and order, and to this day
the only person who may charge a person with an offence is the
CentenierCentenier of the parish in which the offence allegedly took place.
Officers are elected as Centeniers, Vingteniers or Constable's
Officers, each with various duties and responsibilities.

Bailiwick of Guernsey[edit]

The
States of Guernsey Police ServiceStates of Guernsey Police Service (États de Guernesey Service de
police) is the local police force for the Crown dependency of
Guernsey. In addition to providing police for the island of Guernsey
itself, the Guernsey
PolicePolice also provides detachments for the islands
of Alderney,
HermHerm and Sark.
Guernsey Border Agency, responsible with policing cross border and
financial crime, customs and immigration.

Battenburg markings
Sillitoe Tartan
Jam sandwich (slang)
List of defunct law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom
List of law enforcement agencies in
EnglandEngland and Wales
List of law enforcement agencies in Northern Ireland
List of law enforcement agencies in Scotland
Policing in the United Kingdom
Table of police forces in the United Kingdom
Shoulder Number
Warrant card
Royal Hong Kong
PolicePolice Force